Calling AppleCare (Out of warranty)?

Despite having my new, shiny rMBP, I'm still rather attached to my old mid-2009 MBP. It has some older software that won't run on my new rMBP as well as the SuperDrive and a 500gb HDD. It's also nice having two Macs in case something goes wrong. I also can't really sell it as is and have it be worth it

Some of you may recall my posts from a few months back. Basically my MBP suffers from constantly failing SATA cables (I think I'm up to five or six now) and a recurring sleep/wake issue (open lid to black screen and no response except for hard restart). The sleep issue has been around for almost three years now and (I think) led to the SATA cable issues about two years ago. While under AppleCare, I took it in once to the closest Apple Store where they replaced the SATA cable and then went to an AASP two or three times where they replaced the cable every time and the HDD the most recent time. That HDD and cable were fine but the sleep issue remained. The AASP said if the cable failed again they would check the logic board.

The AASP closed last winter, so I decided to go back to Apple in May, even though AppleCare had expired. I originally just wanted to know if repair costs would be cheaper than a replacement and if offering to pay would get me a more thorough diagnostic. They took it in to replace the cable and HDD (the cable hadn't failed, but they figured it was imminent) at no cost. Unfortunately the replacement cable failed in September after the 90 repair guarantee. Regardless I took it in. That time they said it had needed to be reseated and set me on my way. A week or two later it occurred again, so they wiped my HDD and reinstalled Snow Leopard. It then failed the next day, and I had been so put off by the Genius that I haven't gone back and ended up waiting a month for my new rMBP.

So now my old MBP has been sitting for almost two months collecting dust. Since the HDD won't boot and the battery is going bad (400 cycles, 75%), it's not worth much money. I've heard of people calling AppleCare and getting some pretty amazing things to happen, so I'm wondering if it might be worth a try. The thing is, I don't know how to go about doing it. I don't really need or want to go through troubleshooting a four year old machine that's out of warranty (plus I've heard it costs money?). How should I go about doing this? I don't really expect or particularly want a replacement (although a 2012 non-retina would be nice). A quality repair job on my existing machine would be enough, and maybe a slap on the wrist for the Geniuses at the store who have been less than helpful. Or even just a slap on the wrist and an "I'm sorry they didn't treat you well". I understand that it's a four year old machine, and they don't have to do anything for me. But the issues did start under warranty, and the store hasn't charged me.

On the other hand I can replace the HD cable myself for $20 (Amazon), but who's to say it won't fail again? I'd also replace the battery at some point down the line, but it's fine for now.

Thanks in advance for any guidance! Hopefully I can post one of those "OMG APPLECARE IS AMAZING THEY REPLACED MY ANCIENT LAPTOP!!!" lol.

Edit: I should also not that I had installed 8gb of RAM but took it out when it failed the most recent time. If I get it repaired again I'll put the 8 back in. If not, my parents could probably use it in their 2010 17".

callin their phone support and explain their story, specify the genius who was less than helpful, generally the people over the phone are far more hellpful than some geniuses. they should help get you sorted, also specify the umpteen times u have visited but without a solution to this recurring problem

callin their phone support and explain their story, specify the genius who was less than helpful, generally the people over the phone are far more hellpful than some geniuses. they should help get you sorted, also specify the umpteen times u have visited but without a solution to this recurring problem

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Called them just now, specified the issues and how they've been around for a while and haven't been fixed. Guy didn't want to charge me $19 for something he "couldn't help with" so told me to go back to the store. Grumble

Called them just now, specified the issues and how they've been around for a while and haven't been fixed. Guy didn't want to charge me $19 for something he "couldn't help with" so told me to go back to the store. Grumble

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If you decide to go back to the store tell us what happened. Hopefully they realize what's happening and either give you another MacBook (which may/may not happen) or finally find a fix for this. Hope things go well!

When you go back to the store ask to talk to the manager and explain how unhappy you've been with the lack of progress on a repair. Tell the manager that all you want is a laptop that works properly. Be polite but firm about how you feel you've been treated. Make sure it is their problem, not yours.

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